Fawn Harris coordinates SPP's conservation nursery at Washington Corrections Center and works for West Sound Wildlife Shelter. To everyone's delight, she merged her worlds to bring turkey vulture Princess Remington into prison. Photo by SPP staff.SPP's 2016 team of Oregon spotted frog releasers included staff from Cedar Creek Corrections Center--where the frogs were raised--and several lucky SPP staff. Butterfly technicians pose in front of educational poster set up for Girl Scouts Behind Bars visiting the butterfly greenhouse. Photo by Seth Dorman.SPP programs would not be possible without the support and good will of corrections staff; our thanks to them for all they contribute to our work. Photo by Benj Drummond and Sara Joy Steele. Conservation technicians Stephanie Boyle and Lerissa Iata check on prairie species growing in the hoop house at Washington Corrections Center for Women. Photo by Joslyn Rose Trivett.

Partnerships

SPP has been a collaborative effort from the beginning, and we see partnerships as central to our success. The original partnership between The Evergreen State College (Evergreen) and Washington State Department of Corrections (WA Corrections) remains the foundation of all we do, both in Washington and for the SPP Network. The partnership is strengthened by SPP’s co-directorship: Dr. Carri LeRoy is a member of the faculty at Evergreen, and Steve Sinclair is Secretary for WA Corrections. The two organizations share in initiating new programs, collaborating with partners, supervising inmate technicians, and disseminating SPP outreach materials and resources. SPP staff at Evergreen and WA Corrections work together daily and at every level of our operations.

WA Corrections staff at every level of the department shape and support SPP programs. From the department Secretary and Directors of multiple offices at Headquarters, to leadership at each prison, to every kind of staff and custody position. At Evergreen, SPP staff are housed in a Public Service Center, and their efforts are enriched by input and support from faculty, graduate and undergraduate students, and other college staff.

Program partnersNearly every SPP program also calls upon the expertise and support of additional partners. Key partners include (for details on each organization’s involvement with SPP, please click on the link):

Each of these organizations collaborates closely with SPP on one or more programs and adds to our expertise, funding resources, connections to the community, and the reach of our programs.

SPP also works with numerous smaller community and conservation organizations: local humane societies that partner on prison dog programs; sheriff’s offices that provide unclaimed bikes for bicycle restoration programs; food banks that accept prison-grown produce; university extension offices that provide training and certification, and volunteer groups that work with SPP on achieving conservation goals. Known program partners are recognized in our list of programs.

SPP Network

As SPP has transformed into a statewide endeavor, our partnerships reach across the country and internationally. We have had inquiries from more than twenty states and several countries wanting to replicate SPP’s model. In September, 2012, the nascent SPP Network had its first meeting in Olympia, Washington. The same teams rejoined in Salt Lake City, Utah in March, 2013, and showed impressive progress and plans for the future. SPP-Washington and Utah’s Initiative to Bring Science Programs to the Incarcerated (INSPIRE) are working together to shape the Network’s offerings, funding, administration, and future. To contribute or get involved, please get in touch!